Hexer - Abyssal (2023)^{Release ID: 42833}

I have been a huge fan of Hexer going right back to the first demo in 2015 and was made up to see they were releasing a new album, three years on from 2020's Realm of the Feathered Serpent. The Germans have never been easy to pigeonhole and I think they have made it even more difficult this time around with an album that spans several genres and displays multiple influences, all whilst retaining that bassy, cavernous and hypnotic vibe they have employed since day one. Abyssal employs aspects of death, black and sludge metal then twists them together with elements of psychedelia for a hypnotic, acid-fuelled trip through an extreme metal landscape. The effect is most reminiscent of a band like Oranssi Pazuzu or, more specifically their spin-off, Waste of Space Orchestra.

There have been some big changes in the Hexer camp since the release of Realm of the Feathered Serpent with the band being reduced to a duo and guitarist / vocalist Marvin Giehr being the only remaining member from that album's lineup. The other member is new drummer Melvin Cieslar, so Abyssal is an album lacking the keyboards from RotFS, resulting in a stripped-back presentation with less thickness to the sound, particularly at the bottom end and no building of atmospheric layers. The tracks are generally quicker-paced and as there is considerably less doom metal influence, Abyssal sounds more savage and aggressive. Also gone, in the main, are any post-metal build-up and release elements that did feature from time to time on the band's previous material, thus adding to that more feral sound. I guess to some folks this all sounds like Abyssal is a lesser release than it's predecessor, but I must disagree. The songs are more focussed and immediate than the sometimes meandering nature of the tracks on RotFS and as such are, on the whole, more memorable. Whereas Realm... is an album that you can let wash over you and relax you with it's hypnotic nature, Abyssal is more of an album for on the go and firing you up.

In truth, I am not exactly sure how I would genre tag Abyssal. It features so many elements in equal part that it is difficult to definitively label, whether it be death, black, sludge or stoner metal - there is even a throbbing bassline section in opener Katarakt that could be construed as post-punk. Stoner-black... Atmo-death anyone? Fucked if I know! It is however another stand-out offering from a band who don't have any desire to follow any current trend in metal but who are following their own path and have developed a singular sound and good luck to them for that.